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Sr. Data Center Network Engineer at a insurance company with 10,001+ employees
Real User
Good data center connectivity and is easy to use
Pros and Cons
  • "We are a Cisco shop. This solution is better compared to other options."
  • "I would like to see more automation and for it to be easier to use."

What is our primary use case?

We use it for data center connectivity and we integrate it with ACI. 

How has it helped my organization?

We are a Cisco shop. This solution is better compared to other options. 

What is most valuable?

It's easy to use. 

What needs improvement?

I would like to see more automation and for it to be easier to use. 

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Cisco Nexus
August 2025
Learn what your peers think about Cisco Nexus. Get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions. Updated: August 2025.
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What do I think about the stability of the solution?

Stability is much better than it was. 

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

Scalability is good. 

How are customer service and support?

Their technical support is better than other companies. 

How was the initial setup?

The setup can be easy and complex depending on the product and features we're using. 

What about the implementation team?

We used in-house resources for the deployment. 

What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

Our licensing costs are yearly. 

What other advice do I have?

I would rate this solution a nine out of ten. Nexus is better than other switches so I would advise going with this solution. 

Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
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NetworkCaac9 - PeerSpot reviewer
Network Coordinator at a government with 1,001-5,000 employees
Real User
The port density enables us to connect all of our departments and agencies
Pros and Cons
  • "It has improved our organization because we have aggregated ports, we're able to put multiple agencies on the multiple different interfaces that we have going there. We're able to separate them out with the use of VLANs and whatnot."
  • "If we could get some more automation integrated into it, it would make it easier."

What is our primary use case?

We got it for its port density. Our primary use case of this solution is so we can connect all of our other departments and agencies. It'll be the main connection to our core routers. I don't work directly on it, I work with the router that connects to it. 

How has it helped my organization?

It has improved our organization because we have aggregated ports and we're able to put multiple agencies on the multiple different interfaces that we have going there. We're able to separate them out with the use of VLANs and whatnot.

What needs improvement?

The VLAN is a little more hand driven now. I don't know exactly why the split screen does that.

If we could get some more automation integrated into it, it would make it easier.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

As far as I know, it's been stable the entire time we've had it. 

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

We haven't surpassed the scalability at this point. 

How are customer service and technical support?

I haven't had to use their technical support for this solution but I have used Cisco support in general. They're outstanding. 

Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?

We knew we needed to switch solutions because when we migrated to Cisco as a network, we needed a good way to could control a lot of our outside agencies.

What about the implementation team?

We did the deployment ourselves and we have a reseller that sells us the equipment. 

What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

We do yearly licensing. 

What other advice do I have?

I would rate this solution an eight or nine out of ten. 

I would advise someone considering this solution to research what your actual needs are so that you size it correctly. You can always upgrade size. It's harder to downgrade.

Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
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Buyer's Guide
Cisco Nexus
August 2025
Learn what your peers think about Cisco Nexus. Get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions. Updated: August 2025.
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reviewer1122879 - PeerSpot reviewer
IT Manager Network at a transportation company with 10,001+ employees
Real User
The rack-based design enabled us to eliminate the more complicated to manage chassis-based designs
Pros and Cons
  • "This product has improved the way our organization functions in the way that the rack-based design allowed us to eliminate chassis-based designs. The chassis design is more complicated to manage and maintain in field operations."
  • "I would like to see the integration of the products into something where it's seamless where an engineer never touches the switch again, never does CLI and you move to an application based network organization."

What is our primary use case?

The pros of the Cisco Nexus are the simplified integration with the data center and the end platform before building a data center.

Our primary use case of this solution is for the data centers. 

How has it helped my organization?

This product has improved the way our organization functions in the way that the rack-based design allowed us to eliminate chassis-based designs. The chassis design is more complicated to manage and maintain in field operations.

What is most valuable?

The most valuable feature of this solution is the ease of management.

What needs improvement?

I would like to see network function virtualization with no hardware.

I would like to see the integration of the products into something where it's seamless where an engineer never touches the switch again, never does CLI and you move to an application based network organization.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

The stability of the solution needs to get a better handle on the vulnerability in recent code releases that aligns better with the DCN product. We'd like to avoid the need for continual upgrades and potential outages in our data centers and having to reboot the switches for each OS upgrade.

Cisco Nexus is stable, but then, in February of 2017, a cyberwar started. Cisco is getting hammered and we're seeing that evidence in very frequent updates to the OS system. If you have six data centers or you've got multiple locations around the world, these efforts take many months to update successfully to every device. 

When it takes us multiple months and two or three releases in the middle, we invest a lot of money in maintaining the device. The hacker community is the issue. 

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

The scalability is fine. 

How are customer service and technical support?

The solution's technical support is used by my architects. I don't use it personally. 

Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?

The way that our airline works, because we've recently been in a merger, is that we're putting two big airlines together. Our primary driver has been the end-of-service lifecycle and the ability to remain PCI compliant. We must also remain compliant with cybersecurity.

We typically wait until the end of service life. As we practice this, we end up doing these refreshes and adding new architecture. We're making decisions now based on features, functionalities, and outcomes for passengers getting on planes to improve their experience.

How was the initial setup?

We initially started a couple of years ago with Cisco Nexus. We started the design with 9Ks and 5Ks, we ended up reevaluating the situation features and going with more 2Ks to lower the costs for what we need. 

What about the implementation team?

For the deployment, we used our staff engineers and Cisco people. We worked together with Cisco on finding the right solutions for implementing the product.

What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

I am intimately aware of what the licensing costs are with Cisco Nexus. It depends on what we decide, how much margin, and what our strategy is when we have an intersection point to where we think won't be spending money on equipment we aren't going to use. 

I have already had conversations, here and at the five portals required to manage the licensing, with the new OS releases and the requirement to use the smart license portal. There are too many portals. We need a manager. 

Cisco Nexus is similar to other licensing costs but it's painful right now. I've sent everything to our account executive to work with for our systems integration and logistical partners. They need to solve this and help train the team. There's a big gap in there.

Cisco Nexus is very costly for the service. It's insurance in case something happens. We have a very good strategy that we're happy with, it's just the renewal process that is problematic on the license. 

When I walked through the customer experience center and explained the situation, they got a good feel for how much pain and suffering it's been. Cisco needs to understand how hard the renewals are each year for us. 

Even having the SmartNet Total Care portal, having a person dedicated to the distributors, etc. it's still a mess. If the incentives get better, which I know Cisco is working on, it would be great, right now, we're buying the license year-to-year.

We have three hundred to four hundred data centers of Nexus. So the coverage associated with Smart Net, 27 by 4, is basically what we spend each year. 

Which other solutions did I evaluate?

We did look at another vendor. Cisco is found around the world with good support and credibility in the industry. It was an easy choice even though the functionality from the competitor was more.

What other advice do I have?

On a scale from one to ten, I would rate this product an eight for the way I work with my team. They select the product, I serve them. I rate it from a perspective of what the quality of life my team has from using this product. How simple, risk-free, and smooth can we do this without putting the data centers in jeopardy.

Make sure you do your comparisons and make the right decision with the right product before you decide. I would recommend taking a good hard look at Cisco and the Nexus product line and what it could do for you.

Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer. Partner.
PeerSpot user
Solutions Architect at ABS Technology
Real User
Provides fast access to storage and data center resources
Pros and Cons
  • "Cisco technical support is a good backup team when you have issues with anything. If you open a case they are very good at following up and making sure that the issue's resolved according to the needs of our network."
  • "In the next release of the solution, I would like to see varying integration between VRF (Virtual Routing and Forwarding) instances so we can integrate BGB into different VRFs in a more organized way. We have some issues with tunnels and VRFs."

What is our primary use case?

Our primary use case for the Cisco Nexus solution is to provide data center access for our customers. This includes providing servers, storage, and interconnecting those to the rest of the network.

How has it helped my organization?

This product has improved the way our organization functions by providing fast access to storage and data center resources. We are getting better performance out of our network by using this platform.

What is most valuable?

The most valuable feature of this solution is the capacity of the switches. One of the main advantages of going with the Nexus 9000 is that it can do advanced routing and segmentation with VLANs. 

What needs improvement?

In the next release of the solution, I would like to see varying integration between VRF (Virtual Routing and Forwarding) instances so we can integrate BGB into different VRFs in a more organized way. We have some issues with tunnels and VRFs. 

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

The stability of this solution is pretty cool. NX-OS is a solid match. It does run the features and all the protocols very well for us.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

The scalability of this solution is very good. We had different options for physical form factors. It does work for what we need on our enterprise network.

We have a 1GB connection to a data center. Then we upgraded a server. We can quickly get more scalability from the switch by migrating to 10GB or even 25GB connections.

How are customer service and technical support?

Cisco technical support is a good backup team when you have issues with anything. If you open a case they are very good at following up and making sure that the issue's resolved according to the needs of our network.

Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?

We knew we needed to invest in a new solution because upgrading the network is a must for every company. We had to just take into consideration the legacy switches that we were using were not giving the performance needed for the network. The old hardware did not support the demands of our clients connecting to the network.

How was the initial setup?

The initial setup, if you know what you are doing, is very straightforward. You have to know what a switch is and what routing protocols are, like any other device.

If you are familiar with the IOS it is a little bit easier to translate to NX-OS and use the switch.

What about the implementation team?

We're the reseller for Cisco Nexus.

What was our ROI?

We have seen new ROI from the previous platform to the new one. We're starting to see that.

What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

Our licensing costs for this solution are approximately $100K a year for the switching part.

Which other solutions did I evaluate?

The products on our shortlist were mostly Cisco Nexus and Meraki.

What other advice do I have?

On a scale from 1 - 10, I would give Cisco Nexus a 9. It's a solid platform. We've been having very good stability from the use of that network device.

Take into consideration the features and the protocols that are in use. Make sure that whatever is being used as a current platform can be migrated to the Nexus and that the features are available before you purchase the hardware. Understand exactly how the infrastructure will work from the operating system of the switch in case you're using any advanced features from another platform. Make sure that the transition is as expected and don't go down a bad path.

Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer. Partner.
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NetworkEf82e - PeerSpot reviewer
Network Engineer at a tech services company with 501-1,000 employees
MSP
Performs well and has good capacity for the number of customers that we can get onto it
Pros and Cons
  • "The scalability of Cisco Nexus is good. We've had them for the entire lifetime. We've never had to upgrade them yet."
  • "If I call during a high volume, I might get someone that just doesn't know as much or it takes a little bit of time and they put us on hold more. Otherwise, it's good."

What is our primary use case?

Our primary use case is for multitenant switching in our data centers for our edge equipment to go in between our firewalls and out to the internet.

How has it helped my organization?

It's performing well. 

What is most valuable?

The most valuable feature is the capacity for the number of customers that we can get onto it.

What needs improvement?

I get more of the frustration out of Juniper equipment than I do from Cisco products. Cisco Nexus is more versatile for us in comparison to Juniper. The routing is easier with Cisco.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

The stability is good. We've never had any of them die. They've been very consistent.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

The scalability of Cisco Nexus is good. We've had them for the entire lifetime. We've never had to upgrade them yet.

How are customer service and technical support?

Their technical support is good and very helpful. They knew exactly what we needed. If I call during a high volume, I might get someone that just doesn't know as much or it takes a little bit of time and they put us on hold more. Otherwise, it's good. 

What about the implementation team?

We used a consultant for the deployment. 

What other advice do I have?

On a scale of one to ten, I would rate Cisco Nexus a ten. I like it. I would advise anyone to go through a professional consultant with Cisco training.

Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
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NetworkEcce9 - PeerSpot reviewer
Network Engineer at a university with 10,001+ employees
Real User
Scales well and supports a lot of servers
Pros and Cons
  • "The most valuable feature of this solution is that it scales well. It supports a lot of servers. We don't have to come up with different designs for anything. That's the best part about it."
  • "They need to understand that when we call them and have an issue, it's our production and sometimes they want us to do repairs that would cause other issues. That's the biggest problem."

What is our primary use case?

The primary use case for Nexus in our company is for the data center. Everybody that has access to our remote server rooms throughout the campus wants 10G data ports all the way across. 

How has it helped my organization?

This product helps us by resolving the issue of not having to install fiber everywhere. If you use Nexus, it has the 10G copper ports. That way we can just use the current infrastructure. Cisco Nexus saves us money in the long run.

What is most valuable?

The most valuable feature of this solution is that it scales well. It supports a lot of servers. We don't have to come up with different designs for anything. That's the best part about it.

What needs improvement?

I would like to have the feature where you can install something like operf on it so you can do troubleshooting without having to configure operf on servers.

We had issues with Cisco Nexus during upgrades. When we first got the system, we were having some issues. The whole system crashed. 

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

The stability of this product works great.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

The scalability of Cisco Nexus is wonderful. It supports the whole data centers. We have no issues with scalability.

How are customer service and technical support?

They need to understand that when we call them and have an issue, it's our production and sometimes they want us to do repairs that would cause other issues. That's the biggest problem.

Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?

We are a Cisco shop. We don't have to worry about learning different commands with Cisco Nexus. It still has different commands because of the platform, but it was a lot easier to understand than if you're going through a different company.

How was the initial setup?

The initial setup was straightforward on Cisco's part. Other customers that we work with didn't understand their equipment.

What about the implementation team?

We installed it ourselves. We just ordered our equipment through a reseller. They weren't involved in any on-site work.

Which other solutions did I evaluate?

It was Cisco or Juniper.

What other advice do I have?

On a scale of 1 to 10, I would rate Cisco Nexus an eight. When trying to do the upgrades sometimes there are issues. Sometimes you get a bug that Cisco doesn't know about. When you try to explain it to them, they always say it's impossible and can't be replicated.

You need to understand all the options, the servers and different applications you can run, and how Cisco Nexus supports the overall picture.

Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
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Administ4e10 - PeerSpot reviewer
Administrator at a security firm with 1,001-5,000 employees
Real User
Has good network visibility that enables us to see all of the devices
Pros and Cons
  • "The most valuable feature of the solution is network visibility. It becomes the core switch. All of the devices connected route towards it."
  • "The initial setup of the Cisco Nexus platform takes a long time. It's a complex system because we have a lot of security layers."

What is our primary use case?

Our primary use case for Cisco Nexus is for our data center and for collaboration with other switches.

How has it helped my organization?

This product has improved the way our organization functions in the way we communicate with data from devices out there. Everything is on the radar if you deploy it on Nexus.

What is most valuable?

The most valuable feature of the solution is network visibility. It touches all of the switches. It becomes the core switch. All of the devices connected to it route towards it and so we're able to see all of the devices. 

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

Cisco Nexus is very stable. It's getting better now. The technology is moving to a fast and very innovative switch. It picks up all these new options and integrates them into the device. It's good for our infrastructure.

How are customer service and technical support?

The solution's technical support is very robust. They're able to resolve any issues very quickly. There were not any issues that Cisco could not resolve for us so far.

Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?

We were using Nexus 6000 and now we're moving towards 9000. We switched because we are doing a cleanup. We are building up our infrastructure from the ground up, adding more new devices, revamping our infrastructure, and revamping our data center. It's just a need because we got too comfortable using our old devices, which are not supportive so we lost our patching. We ourselves were creating security holes. We have a need now for this solution.

How was the initial setup?

The initial setup of the Cisco Nexus platform takes a long time. It's a complex system because we have a lot of security layers. 

What about the implementation team?

We used a reseller for the deployment. 

Which other solutions did I evaluate?

We also looked at PCM. 

What other advice do I have?

On a scale from 1 to 10, I would rate Cisco Nexus a good nine. Cisco is moving to new technology. It's more advanced. Anyone should invest in it. It's good.

Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
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Network Administrator at St Ambrose University
Real User
Offers increased bandwidth, faster performance, and newer software
Pros and Cons
  • "We got increased bandwidth, faster performance, and newer software which has improved our organization."
  • "They should make it easier to update the code on it."

What is our primary use case?

Our primary use case for the Cisco Nexus solution is as a core fiber switch.

How has it helped my organization?

We upgraded from a 6509 unit to a 9504. We got increased bandwidth, faster performance, and newer software which has improved our organization. 

What is most valuable?

We use Cisco Nexus as a switch that houses all of our fiber connections.

What needs improvement?

They should make it easier to update the code on it. Upgrading should also be easier. 

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

The stability of the solution is very strong. No downtime with it. No problems. No issues.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

It scales to just about any use that we needed to throw at it. It's very accommodating.

How are customer service and technical support?

The solution's technical support is perfect. We have had no problems with it.

Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?

We switched because our current product was end-of-life and falling out of support.

How was the initial setup?

The initial setup was straightforward. It has a simple routing protocol, not very many static routes.

What about the implementation team?

We used a certified reseller for deployment. Our experience with them was excellent.

What was our ROI?

We have seen ROI. 

Which other solutions did I evaluate?

We didn't have any other vendors in mind. Cisco is the product that we've used quite heavily, so it made sense to stay with them.

What other advice do I have?

On a scale from one to ten, I would rate this product a ten. Cisco Nexus is very solid and easy to use. 

Go with Nexus, you won't regret it.

Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
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Buyer's Guide
Download our free Cisco Nexus Report and get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions.
Updated: August 2025
Buyer's Guide
Download our free Cisco Nexus Report and get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions.